ENABLING A COMMUNICATION SERVER TO USE MSC-S RELATED FUNCTIONS

• US 20130268612A1
• Filed: 12/17/2010
• Published: 10/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Witzel, Andreas
• Granted Patent: US 9,667,798 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/50 Circuit switching systems, i.e. systems in which the path is physically permanent during the communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0024 Services and arrangements where telephone services are combined with data services arrangements which combine a telephonic equipment and a computer H04M7/0012
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0045 where the text-based messaging service is an instant messaging service
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/06 Registration at serving network Location Register, VLR or user mobility server

Abstract

The invention relates to a method of registering a communication client at a communication server, wherein the communication client is associated to a mobile terminal and wherein the communication server is associated to a mobile switching node of a circuit switched network, the method comprises the steps of: initiation a connection between the communication server and the communication client, sending identification information to the communication server by the communication client via the connection, interrogating an authentication module of the mobile switching node to perform a user authentication by the communication server, fetching subscriber information from a database by the communication server, and sending subscriber information to the communication client via the connection.

Claims

1. A method of registering a communication client (132, 712) at a communication server (3, 721), wherein the communication client (132, 712) is associated to a mobile terminal (18, 711) and wherein the communication server (3, 721) is associated to a mobile switching node (2, 72) of a circuit switched network, the method comprises the steps of:

initiating a connection between the communication server (3, 721) and the communication client (132, 712),

sending identification information to the communication server (3, 721) by the communication client (132, 712) via the connection,

interrogating an authentication module (28) of the mobile switching node (2, 72) to perform a user authentication by the communication server (3, 721),

fetching subscriber information from a database (27) by the communication server (3, 721), and

sending subscriber information to the communication client (132, 712) via the connection.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the database (27) is a visitor location register, VLR, which is associated to the mobile switching node (2, 72).

3. A method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the database (27) fetches the subscriber information from a central database (75).

4. A method according to any of the claims 1 to 3, wherein parts of the identification information is determined from a subscriber identity module, SIM, associated with the mobile terminal (18, 711).

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein one part of the identification information is derived from the Mobile Subscriber Integrated Services Digital Network Number, MSISDN or the International Mobile Subscriber Identity, IMSI.

6. A method according to claim 5, wherein one part of the identification information is derived from the International Mobile Equipment Identity, IMEI.

7. A method according to any of the claims 4 to 6, wherein one part of the identification information is derived from the Access Point Name, APN.

8. A method according to any of the claims 1 to 7, wherein at least one part of the identification information is stored in a Domain Name System, DNS, server (74) in combination with an IP-address of the communication server (3, 721).

9. A method according to claim 8, wherein the mobile terminal (18, 711) is CS connected via a radio network (17) to the mobile switching node (2, 72) and wherein the method further comprises the step of sending the IP-address of the communication server (3, 721), which is associated to the mobile switching node (2, 72), to the DNS server (74) in combination with the at least one part of the identification information of the communication client (132, 712).

10. A method according to any one of the claims 1 to 9, wherein the method further comprises the step of receiving a text message by the communication client (132, 712) which contains configuration information.

11. A method according to claim 10, wherein the text message is a Short Message Service, SMS.

16. A method according to any of the claims 1 to 15, wherein the connection is a Transmission Control Protocol, TCP, or a HTTP based connection.

17. A method according to any of the claims 1 to 16, wherein the method further comprises the step of providing charging data to a charging function (24) of the mobile switching node (2, 72) based on the communication data.

18. A method according to any of the claims 1 to 17, wherein the communication server (3, 721) is integrated in the mobile switching node (2, 72).

19. A method according to any of the claims 1 to 18, wherein the mobile switching node (2, 72) is a mobile service switching centre server, MSC-S.

20. A method according to any one of the claims 1 to 19, wherein the communication client (112, 122, 132, 712) is an Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol, XMPP, client and the communication server (111, 121, 3, 721) is a XMPP server.

24. Mobile switching node (2, 72) according to any of the claims 21 to 23, adapted to perform all the steps of the method of at least one of the claims 1 to 20.

12. A method of supporting a communication between a first communication client (132, 712) which is registered at a first communication server (3, 721), and a second communication client (112, 122, 132) which is registered at a second communication server (111, 121), wherein the first communication client (132, 712) is associated to a mobile terminal (18, 711), and wherein the communication server (3, 721) is associated to a mobile switching node (2, 72) of a circuit switched, CS, network, comprising the steps of:

sending of communication data between the first communication client (132, 712) and the first communication server (3, 721) over the connection,

routing communication data between the first communication server (3, 721) and the second communication server (112, 122) over a core network interface (25) of the mobile switching node (2, 72).

13. A method according to claim 12, wherein the mobile terminal (18, 711) is CS connected via a radio network (17) to the mobile switching node (2, 72) and wherein the method further comprises the step of sending the IP-address of the communication server (3, 721), which is associated to the mobile switching node (2, 72), to the Domain Name System, DNS, server (74) in combination with identification information of the communication client (132, 712).

14. A method according to claim 13, wherein the method further comprises the step of fetching the addresses of the first communication client (132, 712) and the second communication client (112, 122) from the DNS server (74) when communication data is routed between the first communication server (3, 721) and the second communication server (112, 122).

15. A method according to any of the claims 12 to 14, wherein the core network interface (25) is an IP core network interface.

21. A mobile switching node (2, 72) of a circuit-switched, CS, network comprising a communication server (3, 721) which is adapted to register with a communication client (132, 712) over a client to server component (36), wherein the communication client (132, 712) is associated to a mobile terminal (18, 711) and wherein the client to server component (36) comprises

a communication unit (361), adapted to initiate a connection between the communication server (3, 721) and the communication client (132, 712);

a receiving unit (362), adapted to receive identification information from the communication client (132, 712) by the connection,

an interrogation unit (363), adapted to interrogate an authentication module (28) of the mobile switching node (2, 72) to perform a user authentication,

a fetching unit (364), adapted to fetch subscriber information from a database (27), and

a sending unit (365), adapted to send subscriber information to the communication client (132, 712) via the connection.

23. Mobile switching node (2, 72) according to claim 21 or 22, wherein the communication client (132, 712) is an Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol, XMPP, client and the communication server (3, 721) is a XMPP server.

22. A mobile switching node (2, 72) of a circuit-switched network, CS, comprising a core network interface (25) adapted to connect the mobile switching node (2, 72) to the circuit-switched network and a communication server (3, 721) adapted to communicate to a communication client (132, 712) which is associated to a mobile terminal (18, 711), wherein the communication server (3, 721) comprises a client to server component (36) adapted to send communication data to the communication client (132, 712), and wherein

the core network interface (25) is further adapted to route communication data from a server to server component (33) of the communication server (3, 721) to a further communication server (111, 121).